In her sixty-seventh novel, Steel sticks to what she knows best, the lifestyles of the rich and glamorous. Here "coming out" refers to an exclusive debutante ball in New York, to which the twin daughters of attorney Olympia Crawford Rubinstein have been invited. Olympia, a blue-blooded spawn of New York's upper class, has three children from a previous marriage and a five-year-old son with her current husband, Harry. To Olympia's surprise, the invitation has caused turmoil and chaos in her household. Ex-husband Chauncey, a stereotypical polo-playing upper-class lout, is demanding that the girls attend the ball and has threatened to withhold college tuition if both girls do not attend. Olympia's current husband Harry, the son of Holocaust survivors, and a hard-working man with liberal tendencies, is violently opposed to the event, which he finds racist and elitist. In addition, the twins have their own ideas, with Veronica, a passionate liberal, refusing to attend, and Virginia already shopping for a dress. Olympia, who fondly recalls her own debut, is upset by her husband's feelings but thinks he'll come around and gently encourages her daughters to attend. The entire plot of this fairly short novel is focused on the resolution of this family dilemma, and as usual, everything works out for the best in the end. Kathleen Hughes Copyright - American Library Association. All rights reserved
